Unburned refractory brick making



llink-.1.11155 .11%1-l R. P. HEUER UNBURNED REFRACTORY BRICKMAKING Filed June 2o, 1947 April 3, 1951 IN V EN TOR.

A TTORNEYS Patented Apr. 3, 1951 UNBURNED REFRACTORY BRICK MAKING Russell Pearce Heuer, Villanova, Pa., assignor to General Refractories Company, a corporation f Pennsylvania Application June 20, 1947, Serial No. 756,001

9 Claims.

My invention relates to the manufacture of refractory brick Which are suitable for use without kiln firing. A purpose of my invention is to reduce the cost of production of refractory brick, lower the thermal conductivity and increase the resistance to sp-alling and rapid temperature changes.

A further purpose 'is to bond non-acid refractory brick consisting essentially of magnesia, chromite or mixtures of the same, by chemically combining with carbon dioxide, thereby producing a strong bond in the brick without kiln firing.

A further purpose is to make up a moistened basic refractory brick mix, consisting of magnesia, chromite or mixtures of the same, preferably containing at least 5% of magnesia and most desirably containing at least to mold the mixture into brick, preferably to evacuate air around the brick, to treat the brick with carbon dioxide gas preferably in excess and at superatmospheric pressure, preferably at ordinaryltemperature and for a time of at least one hour, then desirably to evacuate and store the surplus carbon dioxide and to dri,7 the brick. The surplus carbon dioxide will desirably be used for treating other brick.

A further purpose is to employ a treating gas containing carbon dioxide and permissible impurities of oxygen and nitrogen.

' A further purpose is to employ a superatmospheric pressure of about one atmosphere and a time of treatment of about five hours.

n Further purposes appear in the specification and in the claims.

In the drawings I have chosen to illustrate one only of the many embodiments in which my invention might appear, choosing the forms shown from the standpoints of convenience in illustration, satisfactory operation, and clear demonstration of the principles involved.

'Ihe figure shows diagrammatically typical apparatus for carrying out the invention.

' Describing in illustration, but not in limitation and referring to the drawing.

In the prior art it is common practice to produce refractory brick without kiln firing, Darticularly to avoid the expense -of such firing. Such uniired brick are especially well known in the non-acid refractory eld where the brick consist essentially of magnesia (periclase or dead burned magnesite), chromite or mixtures of magnesia and chromite. In such unred brick it is necessary to obtain without kilnfiring a bond which is strong enoughv to permit handling and shipping from the point of origin to the point of use, and installation and at least initial heating in a furnace at the point of use.

Numerous prior art bonding agents have been proposed for such unred brick. Among those used are sodium silicate, organic bonding agents such as lignin residues, sulfuric acid, sodium sulfate, magnesium sulfate, calcium chloride and the like. These bonding agents are generally incorporated in the refractory mix when it is moistened with water in the tempering process. I'he tempered ymix is then formed. into refractory brick (here used to designate any suitable refractory shape) under pressure. The brick are dried and are then ready for use.

The prior art bonds have been open to certain disadvantages. In some cases they have not adequately strengthened the brick so that they are not capable of handling for shipment and installation without considerable loss. the brick are subject to excessive spalling during initial heating in the furnace during use. Some bonds detract from the refractoriness of the brick.

I have discovered that a superior bond may be obtained without the disadvantage above noted and without the expense of kiln firing byv subjecting the brick to the action of gaseous carbon dioxide, under conditions such that it can combine with the brick. Not only is the product thus produced superior to other unred non-acid refractory brick, but it also possesses denite advantages over kiln fired brick. As compared with kiln red brick, the brick of the present invention `is lower in cost, has lower thermal conductivity and has greater resistance to spalling and rapid temperature changes.

It will be evident that While in use the hot end of an unred brick will often become hot enough so that it is effectively a fired brick after extended use in a furnace lining. The cold end of the brick usually retains its unred character throughout the campaign of the lining, and the physical `and other characteristics which make the bond of the present invention desirable .dur--` ing manufacturing, shipping and installation of the brick persist in the cold end and likewise improve the character in the intermediate zone between the hot and the cold end where spalling is most likely to occur.

The raw material of the brick mix will desirably correspond to that fof previous non-acid brick manufacture. The brick mix may consist of magnesia (periclase or dead burned magnesite) or chromite or mixtures of magnesia and In other cases f chromite. While the invention offers some advantage when chromite alone is used, it achieves its greatest eiectiveness when a substantial amount of magnesia is present in the mix. When chromite alone is present the effectiveness of the invention is dependent upon the impurities which are present in chromite. rEhe brick mix should preferably contain at least 5% of magnesia, and most desirably should contain at least by Weight.

A typical example of the invention employs a non-acid refractory mix comprising the following:

` Percent Coarse chromite passing 6 mesh and resting upon 28 mesh 50 Fine chromite passing through 65 mesh 25 Fine dead burned magnesite passing through 65 mesh 25 It will be noted that this mixture conforms to the principle of gap sizing as set forth in my U. S. Patents 1,851,181; 1,992,482; 1,992,483.

This mixture is moistened Vwith water to the desired molding consistency (usually about 3% water) and pressed into the shape of the desired brick at a high pressure. I find that the molding pressure should be at least 8900 p. s. i., and that a molding pressure in excess of 6000 p. s. i. is very desirable for best results.

In order to obtain most effective bonding action, the brick should still be moist when subjected to the treatment with carbon dioxide. Accordingly the brick are not dried, nor exposed to extended air contact which would permit drying before the carbon dioxide treatment.

A treating chamber l5 is provided of steel or similar construction, preferably Welded for gas tightness, and having a bottom track l I to receive cars l2 through a removable sealed door i3. lI'he chamber is conventionally tubular, as shown.

The treating chamber is desirably constructed with suicient strength to stand a superatmospheric pressure of at least one atmosphere and a vacuum of 29 of mercury.

Y The brick to beftreated are charged anddischarged from the treating chamber by moving the cars l2 in and out along the track. A source of carbon dioxide gas, suitably at a pressure in excess of the atmospheric pressure to be used in the treating chamber, is provided at i4,Vv connected to the treating chamber by a pipe l5 controlled by a valve i6. The source of carbon dioxide gas may be any suitable type of carbon dioxide generator capable of supplying gas under pressure. One well known type is simply a tank containing Dry Ice. The Dry Ice is placed in the tank, the tank is closed and the Dry Ice is converted to gaseous carbon dioxide by steam introduced, for example, through a coil l'l under .any suitable control.

The treating chamber Il] is also provided with a vacuum pump I8, connected to the treating chamber on the inlet side of the pump by a pipe I9 controlled by a valve 26. The vacuum pump on itsA discharge side may either waste gas through a pipe 2l controlled by a valve 22, or may supply it through a pipe 23 controlled by a Valve 24 to the inlet side of a gas compressor 25, which feeds through a pipe 26 to a storage tank 21. The storage tank isv connected with the treatingv chamber by a pipe 23 controlledby a valve 29 so that gas may be discharged from the treating chamber directly to the storage when the pressure in the treating chamber is adequately high and the gas in the treating chamber is adequately pure, and may also discharge gas to the treating chamber when the storage pressure is higher than that in the treating chamber. The suitably moist brick having been placed in the treating chamber are first preferably freed from all surrounding air by sealing the door I3 and, while the valves IG and 29 are closed, evacuation through the valve 2] and pipe I9 under action of the vacuum pump. The atmospheric gases originally present in the chamber are evacuated until a vacuum of about 25 of mercury is created in thev chamber. The atmospheric gases are wasted through the valve 22 and the pipe 2|.

As soon as the treating chamber is adequately free of air the valve 22 is closed and carbon dioxide gas is introduced from the storage 2 through the valve 29 and pipe 28, if any gas is available in the storage. The valve 2Q is then closed and additional gas is introduced from the source i4, building up a total gas pressure in the treating chamber preferably about 30 p'. s. i. or a gauge pressure of approximately 15 p. s. i. above the atmospheric pressure. If the treating chamber has been effectively evacuated, practically the only gas present will then be carbon dioxide and the total pressure will be approximately the same as the partial pressure of the carbon dioxide present. If, however, any impurities such as nitrogen, oxygen or the like remain, the partial pressure of carbon dioxide will be permissibly reduced below the suggested total `gas pressure of 30 p. s. i. and even'below 15 p. s. i. Although the gas used will desirably be substantially carbon dioxide, it need not be pure and in some cases the gas may contain even less than 50% of carbon dioxide, with the balance impurities, such as nitrogen or oxygen, which are inert in the reaction.

A substantial amount of carbon dioxide will be consumed in the reaction and, therefore, rthe quantity of carbon dioxide should be sufficient to provide an excess above that which will be utilized in the reaction.

The time of reaction Will, of course, vary with thevpressure and the temperature, but it is generally desirable to expose the brick in the treating chamber to the carbon dioxide for at least one hour and preferably for about five hours or until an adequate absorption of carbon dioxide has taken place.

The reaction temperature should preferably be approximately room temperature and very high temperatures are objectionable, as the reaction proceeds most effectively when the brick are substantially moist and a temperature high enough to drive off moisture at the particular pressure,v is therefore undesirable. l

After a sufficient quantity of .carbon dioxide has been absorbed by the brick to produce a bond of adequatestrength, the valves i6 and 29, if open, are closed and connection made to the vacuum pump by opening the valve 20. "If the valve' 29 has been closed it may first be opened if the pressure is sufficient to force surplus gas from the treating chamber intothe storage, and then closed again. With the valve 22 closed, the valve 24 open to the vacuum pump, and the compressor operating, remaining surplus carbon dioxide from the treating chamber is removed and compressed in the storage, Where it is available forl treating the next batch of brick. f-

As soon as sufficient carbon dioxide has'beer removed, the evacuation ceases and the treating chamber is opened up for removal of the brick. Air may first be introduced through valve to equalize the pressure. The brick are then preferably dried as in a tunnel drier for example, for 12 to 18 hours at 230 to 300 F. The resulting dried brick are then complete and ready for ship'- ment.

It will be evident that the vacuum pump provides a means for preventing undue contamina` tion of the carbon dioxide with air and also permits removal of carbon dioxide not used in a given cycle and conservation for use on the next cycle. In some cases, where the pressure level will permit, a portion of the carbon dioxide can, as noted above, be removed from the treating chamber directly to the storage by opening the valve 29, although the remainder of the gas Will have to be removed by the vacuum pump feeding to the compressor.`

The determination of how low a pressure level to produce under the vacuum pump will depend partly upon the economy of the process and partly upon the desire to avoid contamination of the carbon dioxide. A vacuum of 25" of mercury is very satisfactory and a vacuum of 28 of mercury is most desirable for commercial operation.

The carbon dioxide treatment will normally have little or no effect upon the moisture content of the brick, and accordingly it is very desirable to dry the brick, as in a waste combustion gas or tunnel dryer at temperatures `of 230 to 300 F. Higher temperatures are not recommended because they might lead to reversal of the bonding reaction or driving oif of carbon dioxide, which should be retained for the purpose of the bond.

The product obtained in the previous example has unusually high strength and is particularly strong at the corners and the edges. The modulus of rupture is approximately 2,000 p. s. i. and the cold crushing strengthwhen tested on the end of the standard brick is approximately 10,000 p. s. i. The brick can be placed directly in a furnace without kiln firing. In its lower thermal conductivity, greater resistance to spalling and to rapid temperature changes and lower cost, it is superior to a kiln dried brick for many applications.

The carbon dioxide treatment, as described in the present invention, is applicable to other types of non-acid refractories, of which the following is an example:

Per cent Coarse dead-burned magnesite passing through 6 mesh and resting upon 28 mesh 50 FineY dead-burned magnesite passing through 65 mesh 25 Fine chron-lite passing through 65 mesh 25 The product in this example can be processed in the same way as that described in the previous example and will produce a brick of comparable quality.

The magnesia for the brick of the present invention may be conventional dead-burned magnesite or periclase produced by calcining of natural magnesite or brucite rock. Other forms of magnesia are equally suitable, such as deadburned or fused magnesium hydrate prepared from seawater, brine or by the treatment of dolomite. The quantity of magnesia present in the refractory should be at least 5% and may be 100% of the refractory material or may consttute any intermediate percentage.

As well known in the manufacture of non-acid refractory brick, it may in some cases be desirable to incorporate some amounts of kaolin, as

v for example 1 to 5% by weight of the refractory treatment.

mix. It may also be desirable to add organic bonding agents such as lignin residues or inorganic bonds such as sulfuric acid (about 1% by weight of the mix), the acid being about 20 Baume.

An especially good bond is obtained by the use of dilute sulfuric acid and the carbon dioxide Refractory masses thus manufactured can be stored in conventional storage sheds without deterioration and the edges and corners do not soften when brought into contact with humid atmospheres.

The product manufactured inaccordance with the present invention is suitable for use in steel melting furnaces, such as the open hearth furnace, copper and other non-ferrous furnaces, rotary cement kilns, glass melting furnaces, chemical furnaces and other high temperature apparatus. The refractory masses remain Well bonded at high temperature and are free from shrinkage and other defects.

Where percentages are mentioned herein, unless otherwise indicated, they are by weight. Mesh sizes given herein are rIyler standard screen mesh per linear inch.

In vieW of my invention and disclosure variations and modications to meet individual whim or particular need will doubtless become evident to others skilled in theart, to obtain all or part of the benets of my invention without copying the structure shown, and I, therefore, claimall such insofar as they fall within the reasonable spirit and scope of my claims.

Having thus described my invention what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

1. The process of making refractory brick, which comprises molding into brick a non-acid refractory brick mix comprising magnesia, and treating the brick with gaseous carbon dioxide.

2. The process of making refractory brick, which comprises molding into brick a non-acid refractory brick mix comprising magnesia, and treating the brick with gaseous carbon dioxide at superatmospheric pressure for at least one hour.

3. The process of making refractory brick, which comprises moistening With water, a nonacid refractory brick mix comprising magnesia, molding the moist mix into brick, treating the brick -while still moist with gaseous carbon dioxide in excess, and drying the brick.

4. The process of making refractory brick, which comprises moistening with water a nonacid refractory brick mix comprising magnesia, molding the moist mix into brick, treating the brick while still moist with gaseous carbon dioxide in excess at superatmospheric pressure for at least one hour, and drying the brick.

5. The process of making refractory brick, which comprises moistening with water la nonacid refractory brick mix comprising magnesia,

molding the moist mix into brick, treating the brick while still moist with gaseous carbon dioxide in excess at superatmospheric pressure of about one atmosphere above atmospheric pressure for about ve hours, and drying the brick.

6. The process of making refractory brick, which comprises moistening with water and sulfuric acid a non-acid refractory brick mix comprising magnesia, molding the moist mix into brick, treating the brick while still moist with A7 gaseous carbon dioxide in excess, and drying the brick.

7. The process of making refractory brick, which comprises molding into brick a refractory mix consisting essentially of a non-acid refractory selected from the class consisting of magnesia, chromite and mixtures thereof, evacuating air around the brick and then treating the brick with carbon dioxide under superatmospheric partial pressure.

8. The process of making refractory brick, which comprises moistening .a refractory brick mix consisting essentially of `a non-acid refractory selected from the class consisting of magnesia, chromite and mixtures thereof, the mix containing at least 5% of magnesia, molding the mix into brick, evacuating air around the brick, treating the brick While still moist with an excess of carbon dioxide, and drying the brick.

9. The process of making refractory brick, which comprises moistening a refractory brick mix consisting essentially of a non-acid refractory selected from the class consisting of magnesia,

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the ile of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 727,114 Eaton May 5, 1903 825,088 Thom July 3, 1906 876,783 Dresler Jan. 14, 1908 1,666,936 Kern Apr. 24, 1928 2,253,620 Heuer Aug. 26, 1941 2,406,909 Schoenlaub Sept. 3, 1946 2,460,761 Miller Feb. 1, 1949 

